DUI crash victim families sue teen driver, liquor store — and metro-east cop
The parents of a boy who died and a boy who was seriously injured in a Monroe County crash last September have filed lawsuits seeking wrongful death damages and payment for medical bills.
The 2024 crash killed 15-year-old Columbia High School soccer player Crawford Bryant and caused brain damage to another passenger.
Bryant’s mother, Tara Luhr, filed the wrongful death complaint. The second lawsuit identifies the injured passenger and his parents by the pseudonyms “Jack Doe” and “Jane and John Doe” to protect the boy’s privacy because he is a minor.
The families are suing Trevor Stawizynski, the teenager who prosecutors say had been drinking before crashing the car, as well as the liquor store they allege sold alcohol to him. They amended their complaints in late August to also include allegations against the city of Waterloo.
They accuse Waterloo Police Officer Justin Braun of failing to “timely and adequately” render aid at the scene, among other lapses when he tried to pull the car over for speeding before the crash.
The city of Waterloo had not filed a response to the lawsuits in Monroe County Circuit Court as of Friday.
Braun, Waterloo Police Chief Dane Luke, Waterloo Mayor Stan Darter and city attorney Natalie Sager Steppig did not immediately respond to the Belleville News-Democrat’s requests for comment.
Stawizynski’s grandparents, Mamie and Michael Stawizynski, who raised him and own the car involved in the crash, are also named as defendants. In court filings, they denied allegations that they were negligent for allowing him to drive the vehicle.
Trevor Stawizynski invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, declining to answer the allegations against him in his responses.
Parents seek accountability for teen’s intoxication
Stawizynski was driving under the influence of alcohol and speeding at the time of the crash, according to criminal charges filed against him.
Justin Kuehn, Stawizynski’s defense attorney in the criminal case, wrote in a sentencing memorandum that Stawizynski is remorseful. The victims were his close friends. Kuehn noted that Stawizynski provided information to their families “that will allow for recovery under the Dram Shop Act.”
The Dram Shop Act allows people to take legal action against owners of businesses that sell liquor, as well as property owners, for injuries caused by an intoxicated person.
The lawsuits allege that Stawizynski, then 16, obtained alcohol from Stop and Go Liquor in Collinsville before the crash. In court, the business and property owners denied the allegation.
Lawsuits accuse officer of negligence
According to Braun’s police report, just before the crash, his dash-mounted radar recorded Stawizynski driving 91 miles per hour on Illinois Route 3, where the speed limit is 45. Braun attempted to pull Stawizynski over, but the teen continued driving and turned onto Hanover Road.
Stawizynski lost control of the car in the 4100 block of Hanover Road and sideswiped a tree, according to the lawsuits. The crash occurred around 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 1, 2024.
The complaints note that Braun never activated his patrol car’s sirens — only the emergency lights — and accuse him of failing to communicate with dispatch or his supervisors, in violation of the department’s pursuit policy.
The city of Waterloo may dispute whether the incident constituted a chase. Braun wrote in his report that he did not know if Stawizynski saw him attempting to stop the car.
“I thought the speeding vehicle was going to stop once he was on Hanover if he saw me behind him,” Braun wrote.
No criminal charges related to fleeing or eluding police were filed against Stawizynski. Braun did not file a separate report on the pursuit, as has previously been department policy.
Local agencies such as the Waterloo Police Department voluntarily submit those reports to the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board for annual analysis and review, including data on deaths, injuries and property damage resulting from police chases.
After the crash on Hanover Road, the parents allege Braun failed to render necessary aid to Bryant and the injured passenger.
The Belleville News-Democrat has requested dashcam and bodycam footage from the Waterloo Police Department. As of Friday, the department was still redacting the video to avoid identifying the juvenile victims.
The Republic-Times in Waterloo, which viewed the video footage when it was presented in court during the criminal case, described it as follows: “Braun briefly attempts to rouse Bryant and (the unresponsive passenger) before another officer arrives to perform CPR on Bryant, and EMS arrive after for further care and response to the scene.”
The News-Democrat has also requested the Illinois State Police report, but the agency said it needed more time to locate the document and determine if redactions are necessary.
Criminal case against teen concludes
Earlier this month, Stawizynski was convicted of aggravated driving under the influence causing death, a Class 2 felony.
In the sentencing memorandum, the defense sought leniency, noting that Stawizynski is young, a good student and had aspired to become an anesthesiologist for many years.
The crash occurred about three weeks after his 16th birthday. He began attending Alcoholics Anonymous shortly after, according to the memorandum.
“This was an endeavor encouraged by Trevor’s grandparents, not because they felt he had already developed alcoholism, but because they wanted him to understand where alcoholism can lead,” Kuehn wrote.
Both of Stawizynski’s parents have struggled with addiction, according to court documents. His mother died from an overdose when he was 14.
Stawizynski is now 17. He was sentenced to nine years in prison by Monroe County Circuit Judge Chris Hitzemann.
Hitzemann has also been assigned to the civil cases related to the crash. A status conference for both lawsuits is scheduled for Nov. 3.
